A reader wrote in with the following comment:
[quoting one of the comments from an earlier Daily Buddhism post]
” . . . not judged by (our) actions? Which, by the way, are all a result of ones family life, and how their father treated their mother, grandfather to grandmother, so on and so forth. Our minds exploited by the information and beliefs of our elders. We are all products of societies influence, generation after generation. And are a direct result of our environment. ”
I remember years ago I was getting counseling from a very wise man and explained to him how when I returned to my home town after a couple years away, I fell right back into my old patterns of life, which included many healthy choices. I explained it him this way, ” Have you ever seen those chickens at fairs that do a trick or something? Like the kind that are in a small cage with a light bulb and a piano? When I was growing up there used to be one near our house at a small amusement park. You put a quarter in a slot below the cage and the light bulb in the cage would turn on. The chicken would see the light and walk over to the piano. The chicken would peck out four or five notes on the piano and food would be dispensed as a reward. You see, I feel like that chicken when I come home. When the light goes on, I play the piano.”
My wise counsel replied, ” You have forgotten one important point. You are not a chicken.”
My Response:
This note made me think. We often hear about the nature vs. nurture argument, and I often wonder just how much of the world’s problems are due to genetics. It seems that on the news, more and more bad things are being blamed on genetics, everything from diseases and obesity to criminal actions.
Obviously whether you are tall or short, black or white, blue-eyed or brown-eyed, is a matter of genetics. No one has any control over that stuff. But is it really reasonable to blame things like overeating and drug abuse on genetics? How much behaviorally can we really blame on genetics rather than upbringing, and even more importantly, personal choice? I won’t argue against there being a genetic factor that can push people in certain directions; perhaps genetics is the cause of someone who has a tendency to overeat or even make them more likely to become addicted to something. However, as the reader who wrote the letter above stated, we are not chickens. We do have a choice in our actions.
Buddhism, more than any other religion or philosophy, emphasizes personal responsibility. You make the choices. You control your life. This is the main repercussion of the existence of karma; you are the one ultimately responsible for yourself, bad genes or otherwise.
Another reader sent in the following slideshow which emphasizes this point perfectly. Sometimes it is possible to go against one’s own inner nature and behave on a higher level.
“Tiger Temple”
If the slideshow does not appear, it can be downloaded as a Powerpoint presentation here:
http://docs.google.com/Presentation?id=dcgwhk5g_159fpzdk6cd